Continuity and Change

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJul 2024

4.0

Word count: 906 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

Tongbian means understanding the principle of change—akin to adaptability: not bound by convention, but changing with the times. The term comes from the “Xici Shang” chapter of the Yi Jing: “To exhaust the numbers and know what is to come is called divination; to understand change is called affairs.” Kong Yingda’s commentary explains: “When things reach their extreme, one who wishes to open them up must know their changes, and only then can they be opened.” Su Shi of the Song dynasty, in the second of his “Yu Li Duanbo Baowen” letters, wrote: “His intellect understands change, and his nature is extremely generous.” Liu Xie of the Liang dynasty in the Southern Dynasties, in “Tongbian” in The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, said: “Only one who weighs between substance and ornament and balances between elegance and vulgarity can be spoken with about tongbian.”

Editor's review

“Tongbian” is a key term in Chinese thought and literary theory, and this entry traces its semantic development: it originates in the “Xici Shang” chapter of the Yi Jing—“to understand change is called affairs”—which Kong Yingda glosses as meaning that when things reach their extreme they must be opened up, and one must know their changes before they can be opened. Su Shi used “intellect that understands change” to evaluate a person. Liu Xie, in “Tongbian” in The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, brought it into literature, arguing for weighing between substance and ornament and balancing between elegance and vulgarity. Thus “tongbian” is not arbitrary novelty-seeking but timely adaptation after understanding the principle of change; it opposes both rigid adherence to convention and groundless change. This Bashu Publishing House edition helps readers understand the concept layer by layer through its original sources. Readers may follow the sequence of the Yi Jing, Su Shi, and Liu Xie to appreciate how the concept shifted from philosophy to literary theory. It is suitable as close reading material for introductions to ancient literary theory and intellectual concepts.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Students of literature and history studying The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons who need to clarify the concept of “tongbian”
Readers of traditional culture interested in the evolution of ancient Chinese intellectual concepts
Writers engaged in writing and reflection on style who wish to learn from classical literary theory
Primary and secondary school Chinese teachers preparing to explain terms from Yi studies or literary theory

Not a good fit for

Readers hoping for a complete annotated translation of The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons
Beginners lacking a foundation in classical Chinese who need word-by-word vernacular explanation
Workplace readers expecting modern case studies to explain adaptability techniques

Reading tips

Read in the order of the Yi Jing “Xici,” Kong’s commentary, Su Shi, and Liu Xie, noting how the concept is adapted step by step.
When reading “Tongbian” in The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, first look at the related chapters before and after to grasp its place in the whole work.
Jot down the differences between “tongbian,” “biantong,” and “xinbian” to avoid conflating the concepts.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
通变第二十九

FAQ

Where does the term “tongbian” first come from?

According to the source material, it comes from the “Xici Shang” chapter of the Yi Jing: “To exhaust the numbers and know what is to come is called divination; to understand change is called affairs.” Kong Yingda’s commentary explains: when things develop to their extreme, to open them up one must know their changes, and only then can one penetrate through. Its original meaning is thus to understand the principle of change, which connects with the later sense of “biantong” (adaptability).

How does Liu Xie use “tongbian”?

In “Tongbian” in The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, Liu Xie applies the concept to literature, proposing that one weigh between substance and ornament and balance between elegance and vulgarity before one can speak of tongbian. In other words, literary tongbian is not mere novelty-chasing but a sense of proportion between inheritance and change; this usage clearly influenced later literary theory.

Are “tongbian” and “biantong” the same thing?

The two are semantically connected; the source material notes that “tongbian” is like “biantong,” both meaning not being bound by convention and changing with the times. But “tongbian” emphasizes first understanding the principle of change and then acting, carrying a cognitive prerequisite; paying attention to this emphasis when reading ancient texts helps accurately understand the original meaning and avoids simply equating it with arbitrary change.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.